Date: December 16, 1773 This was one of the key events leading up to the American Revolution. Protesters (some dressed in faux-Native garb) boarded 3 ships docked in Boston Harbour and threw their cargoes of tea overboard to protest British taxes. Throwing tea into a harbour probably broke a world record for making the biggest cup of tea ever, though if there is one statement guaranteed to rile a Briton, it is the unnecessary waste of perfectly good tea. (I shuddered as I wrote that) Tea is important business.